Tuesday, February 20, 2007

FEAR THIS BOOK : YOUR GUIDE TO FRIGHT, HORROR & THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT by Jeff Szpirglas

OK, what are you afraid of? The dark? Spiders? High places? If you're smart, you won't tell anyone. They may use it against you! But don't be too afraid of this book in spite of the title. You'll find out all about fear. Do you know your body does some interesting things when you're afraid? Your hair stands on end. Your stomach stops digesting food. The pupils in your eyes get bigger. Find out all about fear in this really neat book.

Sunday, February 18, 2007

A True and Faithful Narrative by Katherine Sturtevant

Meg Moore, who we met in At the Sign of the Star, is now a 16 year old but still working in her father's book shop. She has come to accept that she will never own her father's copyrights. But she has a secret desire. Meg longs to be a writer. But in 17th century England, that is just not an option. Her friend's brother is leaving for Italy and asks Meg if he can bring something back for her. Meg playfully asks that he be captured by pirates and enslaved by Muslims so he will have an adventure that Meg can write about. What will happen when Edward is indeed captured and sold as a slave?

Saturday, February 17, 2007

Auch, Mary Jane. One-handed catch

Auch, Mary Jane.
ONE-HANDED CATCH
New York : Holt, 2006
IL 5-8, RL 5.3
ISBN 0805079009
Sixth grader Norm tragically looses his hand in a meat grinder helping his father at the family store. Told with humor and a sense of reality, Norm struggles with wanting to succeed and wanting to take the easy way out. Norm’s father feels guilty regarding the accident and has a hard time coming to terms with the loss but Norm’s mother refuses to allow her son’s disability make him a cripple. As Norm struggles to come to terms with the reactions of those around him, he discovers music and his drive to play baseball increases. Will he learn to play with one hand? Will he ever be given a chance?

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson

Tired of being Hattie-here-and-there, Hattie longs for a place to call home. She has had several homes since her parents died but none of them was really home. And now Aunt Ivy wants to hire her out to a boarding house. Can anything save her from this? You bet. She has inherited a homestead in Montana. An uncle who she didn't know has left her his claim. With little hesitation, Hattie heads to Montana to work the homestead. When she finds out that she has less than a year to fence in the claim and plant 40 acres, she is determined to make a go of it. With the help of some good neighbors, she might just do it. But the United States is at war in Europe and the Spanish flu is making it's way across the country and the neighbors are getting suspicious of anyone who is different. Hattie worries about her homestead, her friends, and her special friend who is away fighting in the war.